After receiving feedback opposing the placement of speed bumps in the village of Damariscotta Mills, the Nobleboro Board of Selectmen reversed its earlier decision and voted unanimously against the placement of speed bumps on the Nobleboro side of the village.
During a meeting with Maine Department of Transportation Regional Traffic Engineer David Allen on Aug. 17, the board had voted to install the speed bumps seasonally, citing residents’ support for speed bumps.
The DOT would have covered the cost of the materials and corresponding signage.
During the board’s meeting on Wednesday, Aug. 31, Bobby Whear expressed concerns about the placement of speed bumps in the village and expressed his opposition to the plan.
Whear lives on the Nobleboro side of the village, where he and his wife own and operate the Mill Pond Inn bed-and-breakfast.
Whear said he polled his neighbors on the issue and the majority of the residents he spoke to were not in favor of the speed bumps.
“It’s going to be noisy. All that traffic is going to slow down,” Whear said.
Selectman Bud Lewis said the selectmen decided to go with the speed bumps after a meeting with Mills residents regarding parking, traffic, and swimming around the bridge between Main Street in Nobleboro and Pond Road in Newcastle.
“We thought we heard an endorsement for the speed bumps,” Lewis said.
Selectman Dick Spear reiterated Lewis’ comments and said that is why the board contacted the state to discuss the matter.
“People, we thought, were for it, and that’s why we followed up on it,” Spear said.
Spear said he was not opposed to changing the board’s decision, but the board had been under the impression that residents wanted the speed bumps.
The selectmen agreed to notify the DOT that the town is no longer interested in the speed bumps.
During an Aug. 22 meeting of the Newcastle Board of Selectmen, the neighboring municipality agreed to place one speed bump on their side of the Mills.
Other business
The selectmen approved an application from Tidewater Telecom to place five telephone poles on Upper East Pond Road.
Spear said he was not opposed to the placement of the telephone poles, but wanted to speak with Tidewater to ensure the poles are far enough off the road to avoid problems with snowplowing.
